This Saul Bellow novel was not my first choice. I pulled out three possibilities from the shelves: Barth’s Lost in the Fun House, Cortazar’s Hopscotch, and On the Nature of Things by Lucretius. Since I’m only halfway through Borges’ Ficciones, the fact that I’d be reading this at the same time as another selection held sway over my decision. One tough read at a time is enough. Barth’s is an anthology and I wanted a novel. Lucretius will be next up but scheduled behind my finishing of a couple other "study’" texts. Hopscotch just looks like such great fun and yet it will demand a greater concentration in reading. And just look how well the Bellow book matches the colors of this site!
But my, what fun to stand at the shelves covered with so much good literature just waiting for me. I’m down now to just a couple books ordered at a time and while I don’t even know if I’ll live long enough to read what I currently have, it just bugs the hell out of me to think they’re not there, ready to open at whim.
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology